


Be My Boyfriend?

by Tea_For_One_Please



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Amber gets a mention, Ambiguous/Open Ending, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Humour, M/M, One Shot, i love them, surprise surprise, these two boys are so clueless and stupid, this is an angst-free zone, tj smitten
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-14
Updated: 2019-03-14
Packaged: 2019-11-18 04:01:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18112865
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tea_For_One_Please/pseuds/Tea_For_One_Please
Summary: "I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend for the party.""Oh," said TJ, comprehension dawning. "Got it."It wasn't until he was lying awake the night before the party that his epiphany hit him. Cyrus wanted him to pretend to want to be around him, to pretend want to hold his hand, to pretend he was completely head-over-heels for this boy. What the adorably clueless dork didn't know was that none of this would be in any way a lie.





	Be My Boyfriend?

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! Just to say, the reason I didn't go a little more into the events of the party was because I'm not Jewish and have no Jewish friends, so didn't feel justified in just getting information from the Internet about traditions and such (although I did look up some traditional foods).
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

TJ glanced up at the gently swinging sign as he walked into the Spoon. He smiled as he saw Cyrus already sitting there, signature milkshakes and baby taters at the ready, but TJ noticed that he looked nervous.

"Hey, Cyrus! You wanted to see me?"

"Hey! I have a favour to ask," Cyrus began.

"Of course, anything."

An eyebrow quirked upwards. "Wait until you hear what it is."

"Ominous," TJ grinned.

"So here's the thing," he said. "Rosh Hashanah is next week, and my various parents are hosting this big party for all my relatives."

"Okay," said TJ, not quite following. What favour could this entail?

"The last time I saw my Aunt Ruthie, she asked for the millionth time if I had a girlfriend," said Cyrus. Now he really seemed uneasy. "I kind of flipped, and told her that I, in fact, have a boyfriend."

"Whoa," said TJ. "How did she take it?"

"Pretty well," Cyrus shrugged. "Surprised, to be sure, but okay."

"And you have a boyfriend?" TJ said, hating the falseness of the cheery tone in his voice. "That's dope! Who is he?"

"That's the thing," said Cyrus, a shadow of guilt passing over his face. "I don't actually have a boyfriend."

"Oh," said TJ, masking his relief. "So what do you need from me?"

"I said I'd bring him to Rosh Hashanah."

"You want me to find you a boyfriend?" TJ was majorly confused; he could see that Cyrus was trying to hint at something but he just wasn't getting it.

"No, come on, TJ!" Cyrus was becoming exasperated. "I need you to _pretend_ to be my boyfriend for the party!"

"Oh," said TJ, comprehension dawning. "Got it."

"I mean, if you'd rather not, it's cool," Cyrus said, "but it would make my life a lot easier come next week."

"No, no, it's fine, I'll do it," said TJ hastily. _Even if it's just for a day, it'd be nice,_ he thought wistfully as he clamped his milkshake straw between his teeth. Cyrus looked immensely relieved.

"Thank you so much," he said. "I'll make it up to you."

"No need," he said with a dismissive shrug. "So what exactly do you need me to do while I'm there?"

"Oh, not much. Just show up and introduce yourself as my boyfriend. And bring some food along. Your challah went down a treat last time, so if you could get that again - "

"What do you mean, 'get'?" TJ said indignantly. "I made it." Cyrus paused his speech, a baby tater halfway to his mouth.

"You made it?" His voice turned softer in his astonishment.

"I didn't tell you that?" said TJ, sipping his milkshake. Cyrus shook his head.

"No... Well, I mean... If you get a chance to do it again before the party that'd be great," he said, apparently having lost his train of thought somewhat. _Cute,_ TJ thought.

"Sure thing. Anything else?" A moment of silence followed, then TJ prompted, "Cy?"

"Hm?" Cyrus looked at him again, having been staring off into the middle distance, apparently in deep thought. TJ wondered if he'd been thinking about him.

"I asked if there's anything else you need me to do at the party."

"Just be your usual charming self," Cyrus smiled, shaking himself out of his reverie. "And talk me up, obviously."

"That will not be a problem," TJ grinned. Cyrus returned it.

"Oh, and if you felt comfortable holding my hand occasionally that'd be good too." It was at this point that TJ felt his heart skip a beat.

"Sure," he said, so casually that he almost believed his own disinterest.

 

Needless to say, TJ spent the next week freaking out. Coming to Cyrus' grandmother's shiva (late, even, as he had been working) was one thing, but spending an entire evening pretending to be his boyfriend was another matter entirely. For one thing, TJ had never had - nor been - a boyfriend. What was he supposed to do? He had no frame of reference, and a Google search of _how to be a good fake boyfriend_ did not yield many useful results.

The challah was a disaster. He was so preoccupied that he forgot to put any raising agent in the mixture, so it came out of the oven as flat as it had been when it had gone in. The second attempt was better, but Cyrus started texting him, so he became distracted and it burned. He had to open almost every window in the house to clear the smoke that billowed from the oven when he opened the door. The third time, it looked perfect, until he dropped it - and the tray it was standing on - whilst taking it out of the oven. The glass tray shattered, and TJ decided taking a food offering that could have glass shards attached to it was a bad idea. It was on the next attempt (after spending forty minutes cleaning up the last one) that all went smoothly. He wrapped it in a cloth and left it on the counter with a post-it attached, which read _Do not touch or I will bake you into the next one._

It wasn't until he was lying awake the night before the party that his epiphany hit him. Cyrus wanted him to pretend to want to be around him, to pretend want to hold his hand, to pretend he was completely head-over-heels for this boy. What the adorably clueless dork didn't know was that none of this would be in any way a lie. In fact, TJ thought, it would probably be rather liberating to not have to put on an act. For once in his life - possibly the only time - he could be completely honest about how he felt about Cyrus and no one would bat an eyelid. TJ wondered if this honesty would give him the courage to be honest with Cyrus himself, too.

The following afternoon, TJ spent the afternoon "preening", as Amber so kindly put it. He showered, put less gel in his hair than usual (he knew Cyrus disapproved of how much he wore at school) and put on a smart short-sleeved button-down and navy khakis. On a whim, he put on a tiny amount of the cologne he'd received for his birthday. _Might as well put in the effort,_ he thought. _Closest thing I'm ever going to get to a date with Cyrus._ Once he was convinced he was ready, he fetched the challah (mercifully untouched) from the countertop and set off at a leisurely place towards the Goodman residence.

Cyrus' stepmother (whose name TJ couldn't immediately recall) greeted him at the door, raising an eyebrow as she recognised him. "Ah, TJ! Cyrus told us to expect you. Come on in."

"I brought you this," he said, holding out the challah. She opened up the cloth and smiled at him.

"It looks wonderful, thank you. I'll put it on the table; Cyrus and his friends are around somewhere." TJ felt his heart drop into his stomach. Cyrus had failed to mention that the others had been invited. Upon reflection, TJ felt rather foolish for not having realised this sooner, but he could still have told him. He felt certain that Buffy would never let him live down the party where he had pretended to be Cyrus' boyfriend. He wandered around, looking for them, but couldn't see them anywhere. Finally he spotted them sat together outside, before he was accosted by an elderly lady whom he recognised from the shiva.

"Who are you?" she said sharply.

"Oh, I'm TJ." He hesitated a moment, and she cut in quickly.

"You're the boyfriend?"

"That's me," TJ said, failing to suppress a smile. She grunted, unimpressed.

"Well, he could have done better," she said. _How rude,_ TJ thought. "What do your parents do?"

"Uh, my dad's a journalist in New York, and my mom's a nurse," TJ said, hoping this would pacify her. He got lucky.

"Ah, nursing. A fine profession," she nodded approvingly. "I was a nurse myself, you know."

"Oh, really?" he said, wondering how long he had to endure this deeply uninteresting conversation before he could go and find Cyrus.

"Yes, I was an orthopaedic nurse for thirty-five years before I retired," she said. TJ gave a polite murmur of acknowledgement. She was about to recount an anecdote about a particularly nasty bunion she had treated once, when TJ was saved.

"TJ!" He whirled around to see Cyrus beaming at him.

"Hey," he said, breathless with relief as he pulled Cyrus into a hug.

"Aunt Ruthie, this is TJ," he said cheerfully, slipping his hand into TJ's. TJ silently congratulated himself for not combusting on the spot.

"We've been introduced," she said curtly. "Run along now, you two, I need a cup of something herbal."

"Charming lady," TJ muttered once she was out of earshot.

"Sorry," said Cyrus. "She's quite nice really."

"You didn't tell me the others were coming," said TJ, regretting it instantly as Cyrus let go of his hand.

"Is that a problem?" said Cyrus, looking worried. "I'm sorry, I thought you were okay with them all now."

"No, no, I am," he said hastily, and Cyrus took his hand again. "I just wondered if you'd told them about me pretending to be your boyfriend. I wouldn't want them to give the game away for you."

"Oh, I told them," Cyrus nodded. "Incidentally, they think it's hilarious, so brace yourself."

"Hey, Mr Goodman," said Buffy as they approached. Andi and Jonah grinned.

"Hi," said Cyrus, frowning at the odd greeting.

"I wasn't talking to you," said Buffy, grinning wickedly at TJ. Andi and Jonah burst out laughing, and TJ found he was able to smile too. It was rather funny.

"Cut it out, you guys," said Cyrus, rolling his eyes. "It's not a big deal."

"Then why are you still holding hands, even though precisely zero of your relatives are around?" Buffy asked. Cyrus promptly dropped TJ's hand. TJ missed it immediately.

"Besides," said Andi, "this is your first relationship! That's a really big deal!"

Cyrus stared at her. "You remember I dated Iris for like a month, right?"

"That hardly counts," Jonah chipped in.

"Yeah," said Andi. "You could barely even bring yourself to call her your girlfriend!"

"Whatever," Cyrus sighed. "Laugh it up, I don't care."

"No, we're sorry," Buffy said. "We still love you, Cyrus."

"She's right," Andi nodded. "It's just kind of funny that you had invented a boyfriend to get your relatives off of your back."

"True." He turned to TJ. "Come on. I'm afraid my parents are wrapped up in this fallacy as well, so we'd better go introduce you to them properly."

"I thought your stepmom gave me a funny look," TJ said as Cyrus chuckled, took his hand again and led him back inside.

 

The rest of the evening passed without incident. Cyrus' parents liked TJ, as did most of his relatives (although a couple of lips curled when Cyrus introduced him as his boyfriend). They ate, they celebrated and welcomed in the new year, and once everyone had gone, Cyrus and TJ found themselves alone, still holding hands, nestled together on the swingseat in the back yard.

"Thanks for today, Teej," Cyrus said, leaning his head on his shoulder. "You made it a lot easier."

"It's okay," he said softly. Cyrus' watch beeped the hour, and TJ pulled out his phone. "Gosh, it's eleven. I'd better go." Cyrus walked him out, and they stood by the Goodmans' mailbox to say their goodbyes.

"I liked being your boyfriend today," said Cyrus after a moment's silence.

TJ smiled. "Me too."

"Maybe... you could pretend to be my boyfriend again at the next festival," Cyrus suggested, offering him a shy smile of his own.

"Yeah, I'd like that." A breeze picked up and Cyrus shivered. "Go in, you'll catch a chill."

Cyrus nodded. "Talk tomorrow?"

TJ nodded. "'Course." Cyrus gave him a hug, and TJ noticed he didn't let go quite as quickly as usual. "See you," he said. He zipped up his jacket and crossed the street, glancing back to see Cyrus walking back up the path to his house. As he watched, he saw by the porch light that Cyrus had stopped at the door, and he looked back at TJ. They exchanged a small smile, before Cyrus opened the door and went in, and TJ wandered off into the night.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, hope you liked it! If so, please leave a comment or hit me up on Tumblr (@tea-for-one-please) with your thoughts :)


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